| 摘要 |
A system and method for using a sectored antenna arrangement within a cellular base station to provide redundant coverage within the surrounding cell is disclosed herein. An antenna feed network connects elements of the sectored antenna arrangement to a set of communication transceivers (79, 80, 81), wherein the feed network includes a combiner array (92, 94, 96) for combining selected ones of the antenna beams upon failure of one of the communication transceivers (79, 80, 81). A switch network (102, 104, 106) serves to provide the resultant combined beam to an operative one of the communication transceivers. Alternately, the sectored antenna arrangement includes an antenna array having a plurality of switchable antenna elements A1-A3, each connected to one of the communication transceivers. The switchable antenna elements A1-A3 project a set of variable-width antenna beams over the plurality of cell sectors. Upon one of the communication transceivers becoming inoperative, an antenna control network operates to adjust beam width of a selected one of the variable-width antenna beams by switching configuration of an associated one of the switchable antenna elements (S1f, S2f, S3f, S1n, S2n, S3n). In another approach each antenna within a primary array (S1n, S2n, S3n) is disposed to project a beam over a single sector, while each element within a redundant array (S1f, S2f, S3f) is designed to encompass a pair of adjacent sectors. Upon one of the transceivers becoming inoperative, a transceiver nominally assigned to cover a sector neighboring the failed sector is connected to the element within the redundant array (S1f, S2f, S3f) encompassing both the failed and neighboring sectors.
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